Students face riot police as protests over school conditions escalate in France

French teenagers ignited rubbish bins and hurled projectiles at police on Tuesday, prompting officers to respond with batons and tear‑gas canisters as the students maintained blockades at hundreds of high schools across the country. The unrest involved pupils aged 15 to 18, the typical demographic of French lycées, and was driven by demands for improved school conditions, a movement that has increasingly frustrated the French government.

The protests have escalated from earlier, more peaceful demonstrations to violent confrontations, reflecting growing frustration among students over deteriorating facilities, overcrowded classrooms and insufficient resources. Authorities have struggled to contain the spread of blockades, which now affect a significant number of secondary schools, and the heightened tension underscores broader discontent with the state’s handling of education policy.

The clashes have drawn national attention, with police forces deploying crowd‑control measures in multiple cities while students continue to organize sit‑ins and barricades. The situation threatens to disrupt the academic calendar for thousands of learners and places pressure on education officials to negotiate reforms, as the government faces mounting criticism for its perceived inaction on the schools’ deteriorating infrastructure.

⚡ Effects Interpreter